Descriptive Writing Using Sensory Details “We live on the leash of our senses.” Diane Ackerman, A Natural History of the Senses

Sense #1: SIGHT Sight is the most commonly used sense in fiction, and includes any description of what something looks like, where an object is placed, anything the character sees, any action the character observes. You don't need to describe everything; choose the particular details that are important to the scene. Read more: http://writingfiction.suite101.com/article.cfm/use_all_five_senses#ixzz0P0QR8x1T

The tinkling of broken glass. Sense #2: SOUND As writers, we need to close our eyes and listen for the sounds in each scene: The birds sang sweetly. The tinkling of broken glass. She shrieked with joy. Read more: http://writingfiction.suite101.com/article.cfm/use_all_five_senses#ixzz0P0QyvtLc

buzz click boom! whoosh…. Sense #2: SOUND And don’t forget onomatopoeia, in which the word is pronounced like the sound: buzz click Read more: http://writingfiction.suite101.com/article.cfm/use_all_five_senses#ixzz0P0QyvtLc boom! whoosh….

Sense #3: SMELL What would the world be like without the smell of flowers, new-mown grass, wood fires, or baking bread? A few, well-placed smell descriptions can make a scene real. Read more: ttp://writingfiction.suite101.com/article.cfm/use_all_five_senses#ixzz0P0SfFARR

Sense #3: SMELL As stinky as a dirty diaper. It smelled like rotten eggs. It smelled clean and fresh, like Grandma’s laundry. The scent of peppermint and tobacco reminded her of Grandfather. The street smelled of gas fumes and hot tar. Read more: ttp://writingfiction.suite101.com/article.cfm/use_all_five_senses#ixzz0P0SfFARR

Sense #4: TASTE Well-chosen descriptions of taste can make your reader feel as if he or she is living in your story. Read more: http://writingfiction.suite101.com/article.cfm/use_all_five_senses#ixzz0P0TiHEQ5

As salty as a potato chip. The metallic taste of blood. The sour taste of vomit. As salty as a potato chip. The metallic taste of blood. Thick, not-too-sweet chocolate, with a hint of orange. The street smelled of gas fumes and hot tar, leaving an oily taste on her tongue. The bitter taste of getting her mouth washed out with soap. Read more: http://writingfiction.suite101.com/article.cfm/use_all_five_senses#ixzz0P0TiHEQ5

Sense #5: TOUCH Texture is another sensory description that gets forgotten. When something is important to the story, make a point of including the sense of touch. Read more: http://writingfiction.suite101.com/article.cfm/use_all_five_senses#ixzz0P0U0XeXc

She caressed the cool, smooth cover of the laptop. Sense #5: TOUCH She caressed the cool, smooth cover of the laptop. The lotion gave her baby-soft skin. He was tied tightly, and the rough bark gouged his back. It was as soft as rabbit’s fur. The biscuit was as hard as a rock. Read more: http://writingfiction.suite101.com/article.cfm/use_all_five_senses#ixzz0P0U0XeXc

Imagine you had to give up one of your senses Imagine you had to give up one of your senses. Which would you sacrifice? Sight? Hearing? Smell? Taste? Touch? Hopefully, thinking about losing a sense makes you appreciate it more while you have it!

What sensory details does the author include in his description of a winter morning in Delhi?

What sensory details does the author include in his description of a winter morning in Delhi?

A mountain of bodies rose above them, the corpses stiff and grimacing A mountain of bodies rose above them, the corpses stiff and grimacing. Their clothes were soaked with blood, and the churned ground was stained with it. Slaughtered men lay over the women they had tried to protect, mothers still clasped their children, and lovers who had tried to shield each other rested in death’s cold embrace. Black arrows stuck out of them all. Neither young nor old had been spared. But worst of all was the barbed spear that rose out of the peak of the pile, impaling the white body of a baby.

As a child I secretly welcomed the first warm day of spring by yanking off my shoes and standing waist deep in the cordgrass to feel the cool mud squish up between my toes. I chose the spot with care, for cordgrass alone is rough enough to rip the skin, and ours often concealed a bit of curling tin or shards of glass or crockery or jagged shells not yet worn smooth by the tides. In my nostrils, the faint hay smell of the grass mingled with that of the brackish water by the Bay, while the spring wind chilled the tips of my ears and raised goosebumps along my arms.

Remember to include: SIGHTS, SOUNDS, SMELLS, FEELINGS, and TASTES. TRY IT! Describe a setting (e.g. mountain stream, ocean storm, abandoned castle, etc.) so that the readers can experience it for themselves, through the use of vivid language and sensory details. Remember to include: SIGHTS, SOUNDS, SMELLS, FEELINGS, and TASTES.

Example: Gray-green waves topped with foam sparkle on the ocean Example: Gray-green waves topped with foam sparkle on the ocean. Over my head, seagulls cry and shriek. Wet, grainy sand squishes up between my toes. The cherry Popsicle I bought from the ice cream wagon melts on my tongue.

Possible settings . . . A kitchen A traffic jam A crowded market A library A parking lot A movie theater A swimming pool An airplane An elevator A classroom A bank A flower shop A gym The beach Inside a computer Inside a beehive A hospital

Great online sensory word banks: here and here